


Is it real yet?

by Alostboi101



Series: Crash and Burn (got7) [1]
Category: GOT7
Genre: Angst, Anxiety, Betrayal, Dream AU, Drowning, Drug Abuse, Emotions, F/M, Future AU, Hormonal Teenagers, Hormones, Insomnia, Love Triangle, M/M, More angst, One Sided Love, Paranoia, Rebels, Revolution AU, Science Experiment AU, Teenagers, Trust Issues, a whole meal of angst, also got7 mvs concept inspired, bambam - Freeform, but hes in on it sssshh spoilers, cursing, escaping, except for ba, ft. teenager by got7, i must protect, kinda lowkey matrrix au, lab AU, like the planning took ages ples read, like wow, lowkey world wide civil wars, matrix / inception highly inspired, multi verse au, no one dies for the first time ever, poly jaebum/jinyoung/youngjae but idk the ship name, power au, revolutions, science experiment eu, self destructive behavoiur, shit ton of nxiety, some cute kissing cuz why not, super power a, super powers, they have like superpowers, they were all kidnapped, trust issuess, youngiae is a ray of sunshine
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-11
Updated: 2020-04-17
Packaged: 2020-05-01 16:48:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 9
Words: 9,187
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19181872
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alostboi101/pseuds/Alostboi101
Summary: seven boys trapped in what seems to be an endless perfect reality struggle to find out the truth, until they realise one of them is hiding something very important





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> introduction

The year is 2049.

The results of pollution and genetic experimentation has resulted in the newest generation being born with 'super powers', a gene that enables their body to contain various 'powers'. Those children without the gene simple died off from infection or the body being too weak. 

An outrage broke out, starting from the victims of the children without the gene, their anger directed at the experiments, government and those with the gene.   
This resulted in conflict between people, government and the children with the gene, fearing for their lives. 

Scientists around the world have taken desperate measures with more experiments on seven individual students carefully monitored and picked to create a temporary solution to the problem. Wether it be a cure to help the ones without the gene or one to eradicate the gene completely. 

Many rebel groups have attempted to stop the experimentation due to ethical issues but have never gotten further than the government. 

In result, this has caused a civil war affect between the people in many countries, one that the government cannot control. 

It would be safe to say that the world was falling apart. 

 

Subjects:

Im Jaebum  
17 years old  
'alpha force'  
stronger, faster, quick thinking, intimidating, natural born leader  
Kidnapped, dissapeared without a trace, claims he died in a activist bombing 

Park Jinyoung  
17 years old  
'clairvoyance' sense are more acute and sensitive, can see further and clearer, hear more accurately, notice things quicker than most and has a natural instinct for things that don't add up or are unusual  
kidnapped, no one looked for him

 

Mark Tuan  
18 years old  
'danger sense', can sense/ notice shifts in atmosphere and hostility from people on a more accurate and faster scale than most people  
kidnapped while on a walk, never really dissapeared just never came back

 

Jackson Wang  
17 years old  
increased strength, speed and stamina  
Kidnapped, faked death

Youngjae  
16 years old  
can create force fields with the atmosphere surrounding him  
went 'missing' 

 

BamBam  
15 years old  
'manipulation' can bend reality/ emotions/ thoughts   
volunteered for the experiment, believes in finding a solution and helping all the ones suffering without the gene, just wants the fighting to stop

Kim Yugyeom  
15 years old  
no power, only subject without the gene  
kidnapped


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> warnings  
> cursing  
> possible triggering mentions of suicide but no ones suicidal/doing it

Jaebum stared into the mirror, his reflection didn't seem right. But he couldn't figure out what was wrong.  
He had had this feeling since he could remember, like nothing was as it seemed.  
He turned away from the mirror, feeling ever empty and went down the stairs. Where his mother greeted him, gave him breakfast and a kiss on the cheek. And his father's car was driving out onto the street.  
In that order, specifically, always. 

Jaebum didn't feel anything for his parents. Not to sound angry or emo or anything. He appreciated the effort and what they did for him. He respected them greatly and never argued with them.  
But that didn't change that he didn't feel anything for them.  
There was something too perfect about them, too routinely.  
His mother's cheek kisses felt emotionless and routine-like. He couldn't remember a time when he hadn't received one in the morning immediately after he came down the stairs and just before he sat down at the table.

.

He got to school by bike.  
He had never fallen, slipped, had an accident or anything. Always had his bike rides been completely smooth and perfect. Even his own control was always fine.  
He ran to the rood, previous to that day he had asked the girl he liked to meet him on the roof before school started. Which provided several more questions, despite not having woken up early or changing his schedule in the slightest he was earlier to school.  
How? 

If he was going to be honest, he didn't like the girl. She was pretty, she was popular, she was fit, she was smart. She was a nice girl that any guy would've wanted to go out with.  
But he didn't feel anything for her. Despite that, he wanted to ask her out.  
The door to the roof opened and he looked up, forgetting his thoughts quickly.  
He smiled slightly, "You're here"  
She didn't return the smile. She stood several meters away, hands tugging at her backpack straps and her ear buds hidden behind her long, flowing hair. The wind blew at her hair and skirt, making her look like prettier than she usually was, she pushed her hair aside and removed one of her earbuds. Jaebum couldn't feel the wind. "It's not a big deal, but I've been thinking for a long time and I need your answer"  
She looked angry from the distance, eyes staring at him emotionless, they all seemed to do that. "I want you to date me" Internally he cringed, he was lost for words and he didn't know what to do. Everything felt numb, emotionless, even standing at the edge of the roof he didn't feel anything. "And If you won't accept me, I'm going to jump"  
Only now, introducing a reckless act did he feel a tiny spark of something. But he couldn't quite place what it was, he hoped that this would give some kind of response.  
"I'm serious, I'll jump", he called out again, now he was dangling his foot of the side, balancing dangerously with his arms.  
She only stared without emotion, without giving a response. She shook her head and turned into the direction of the door, putting her earbuds back in and opening it. "Hey!, are you really leaving? I'll jump!" She kept walking and the door slammed behind her.  
"Okay then, that's fine, just leave" He grumbled to himself, the tiny spark of something gone. 

He glanced once more at the door, noticing a slight movement in the air but he recognized it. He had seen it many times before, but only out of the corner of his eye or when opening them. It would vanish before he could focus on it or figure out what it was.  
He lent forward, trying to see clearer or figure out what it was. The air seemed to twist and distort. He shook his head slightly and it got worse, more of the air in front of him was distorting and a painful electric buzzing started to fill his senses, sending a wave of pain down his right side. He closed his eyes and opened them, it got worse. the colors had gone negative, the light sky now a threatening black and everything was in squares and dots, fear pushed through his body and he closed his eyes again, wishing it away.

When he opened them, he was greeted by the pale cloudy sky like before and he felt himself lose balance. Fear gripped his heart and filled his stomach as he realized he was on top of a roof and falling. The cloudy, grey sky moving away from him. He reached out to hold something but it was too late, he was falling and the roof was getting further and further away from him.  
He closed his eyes and prepared for the impact of the ground but it never came.  
Just darkness.  
He floated for a while in the numb darkness, he couldn't feel anything, not even his body. It was starting to drive him crazy when there was a peak of light and he realized he was opening his eyes.  
.  
When he opened his eyes he was confused. He could feel his body. He could hear an unfamiliar and faint beeping noise.  
"What are you doing?"  
Jaebum focused to see Jackson standing over him, it seemed like it from his position. Jackson wasn't in school uniform but it an oversized striped jumper he had never seen the boy wear.  
He sat up, seeing what looked like a classroom, with desks and chairs and chalkboards. But no teacher, and no other students, just the six boys. similar to Jackson, they were all wearing oversized and somewhere striped clothes. Instead of studying they were either messing about or playing on devices Jaebum didn't recognize.  
He didn't understand, he should be dead, or in hospital, or at least on the ground under the roof. He glanced down at his body, he was wearing similar style clothes to the other boys.  
He must be in heaven or something, or stuck in a coma and hallucinating wildly from the pain and drugs from the hospital. 

Something caught his eye from the corner and he stood up and made his way to the window. staring in complete awe and confusion. Somehow, miraculously, cars were flying. 

At this point Jaebum was starting to feel panicked, he had no idea where he was and he should be dead, he should be dead or in hospital with a mass of injuries and in huge amounts of pain.  
Not in a classroom where cars fly.  
To top it off, everything felt emotionless, just like before.  
Except his friends expressions were emotionless too. At least before they were genuine. 

The door to the classroom opened, gaining all of the boys attention and Jaebum half expected a teacher to walk in and scold them for not working and messing about.  
The girl from the roof walked in, the girl he wanted to ask out walked into the room.  
The girl that usually ignored him at school, that ignored him when he threatened to jump walked into the room, full of seven guys she never talks to, walked in.  
Almost instantly Jackson and BamBam sprang up to greet her, shouts from the other boys followed and Jackson slung an arm around her.  
He never did that.  
He did that to girls that let him, she never did so he didn't even try.  
But the girl accepted it, she let it happen. 

She smiled at Jaebum. A knowing smile, like there was something between them. Jaebum only felt fear.  
.  
The corridor, same bright and disgustingly colored yellow, was empty. Which was odd for a school. She didn't say a word to him, but he followed without hesitation. Despite the terrifying scenario, he felt as if she knew what was going on, or what had happened, or something at least.  
He turned the corner, losing focus of the girl for a moment as the same, terryfing distortion filled his vision. When he opened his eyes he was met by an empty corridor.  
He didn't even question it now, to add to the things that had happened. 

The door at the end of the corridor stood out, everything about the school, if it even was a school, was perfect, immaculate.  
But the door, was old, rusty and beaten up and a bit of light spilled from under neath it.  
He walked down the corridor and opened the door to be greeted by the same roof. Dirty, old, but the sky was dark and full of lights from neighboring sky scrapers and flying cars.  
He blinked twice and returned to the darkness.   
When he opened his eyes he was standing on the edge of the roof, it was still the beginning of the day and the door had just closed on him. He looked down at the ground to see students begin to fill in through the gates. He glanced at the sky to find no flying cars or anything.  
.  
Jaebum lay on his back, staring at his bedroom ceiling, through the darkness.  
Why wasn't he dead?  
Why wasn't he injured?  
What happened when he fell off the roof?  
What happened before? 

The possible explanations that he could think of sounded crazy and completely unreasonable. But he couldn't think of anything not crazy.  
He realized that what he perceived was not real. It couldn't be. There was no scenario or possibility that it wasn't. He had always noticed the distortion in the air but never had a chance to focus on it.  
Today he did. And it was bad.  
He remembered the painful scratching noise that filled his head, a combination of static and electronic noises. He remembered that it didn't feel like an outside source. And when everything changed, the landscape was full of boxes and dots.  
What was he actually seeing?  
Was that what the world was actually like?  
Were there drugs in the air to stop everyone seeing that?  
And why didn't he die?

He should've, or at least been injured and taken to hospital.  
Now that he thought about it, he wasn't even sure there was a hospital.  
He couldn't remember any incidents where he had known someone to be sick or injured, or even himself to be sick or injured.  
People got injured right? People got sick, right?  
So why couldn't he think of any times or incidents? What kind of place was it where people didn't get sick or injured?  
He turned over, nuzzling into the soft pillow and trying desperately to block out his thoughts from all the chaos that happened that day. One thing he was sure about, he had a plan.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> discusions of death/suicide/ things not being real

Jaebum was lost.   
Thursday, 1pm he was lost.   
Since what happened on Monday, he had been investigating various things. He knew what he saw wasn't just a hallucination and there was more to it.   
On Tuesday he had discovered there was no Hospital, or police station, or train station.   
Wednesday He had found the huge invisible wall that surrounded the area he lived in. When he touched it it sent painful sparks through his body. And when he got on his bike and hurled himself towards it, he was thrown backwards off his bike. But he didn't even get a scratch.   
Thursday he was lost.   
He sat facing the invisible wall, his bike lay abandoned in the sunshine. He didn't have to eat or drink. He hadn't since breakfast and although he wanted to, he didn't need to.   
He felt lost, scared, trapped. He didn't know what to do.   
He wanted to tell someone but who? There were no government people to announce the message, his parents wouldn't believe him, no one else would.   
He thought about his friends for a second, the only people who didn't have that haunted emotionless look in their eyes. Did they notice he was gone? Did they miss him?   
.  
Jaebum woke at exactly 7.00 am. He dressed for school and grabbed the notebook that was full of recordings and observations, and made his way downstairs. Where his mother kissed him on the cheek before he sat down and his fathers' car was already driving onto the road.   
He got to school by bike, put it in the bike shed and didn't even bother to lock it up, where there was no police station there was no crime.   
He made his way through the corridors, up the stairs and into his classroom, sat by his desk and waited.   
He didn't expect Jinyoung to run into the classroom, grab his wrist and bolt down the corridor with him.   
He didn't expect Jinyoung to pull him into the boys bathroom and push him roughly against the sinks.   
He didn't expect Jinyoung to notice anything.   
.  
"You've been skipping school for the last three days", He spoke with a low urgent tone, deep warm brown eyes staring into his, exposing real and deep emotion. Despite everything being fake in this world Jaebum had no doubt that Jinyoung was real. "Tell me where you've been," The school bell rung loudly from the corridor and Jaebum glanced at the door, "No one will come in here, they never do. The teachers won't notice we're gone. They never do. And you know why"   
Jaebum felt fear creep up his spine, fear of getting caught but Jinyoung was clearly talking about what Jaebum realized on Monday.   
"How did you find out", his voice came out small and scared compared to Jinyoung's calm tone. He smirked in response.   
"I noticed a long time ago, but no one else did"  
Jaebum's mind did froze, he had been waiting with this awful realization until someone else noticed? How long had it been? How many night filled with fear and hurt had Jinyoung suffered alone?   
"It's difficult to notice, they've done it that way. But when you do it makes sense", Jinyoung had stepped back from him, giving him more space and Jaebum jumped to sit on the counter top.  
"What are you talking about?"  
Jinyoung scoffed, as if it was as easy as spelling, "No roads or stations leading in or out of here, no way to leave, no hospitals, no way to get hurt or be in pain or escape through suicide, no police stations, no crime, it's a perfect world, so perfect you wouldn't even question it unless you notice the glitching"   
The fear returned, Jaebum assumed he was talking about what happened on Monday, the squares, the noise, the distorted air.  
"It's a program, why else is everything so perfectly routinized? Why else does no one question our absence? Why else is everyone so emotionless"   
It begun to make sense, the idea still make Jaebum feel sick but it made sense.   
"The wall-"  
"Yes the wall too"  
A comfortable silence fell over the two, Jaebum could feel the relief from Jinyoung, now that he wasn't alone. He imagined the boy felt safer.   
"How do we get out?"  
"That's what I haven't figured out yet, you see, whoever put us in here is dead set on making sure that we won't get out. Think about it, you can't kill yourself, you cant die, you can't travel-"  
"On Monday, I was on the roof, being stupid-"  
"Does sound stupid"  
Jaebum shot him a glare returned with an amused smirk that sent a burst of warmth through his chest, he ignored it and continued, "I was on the roof, I saw the, 'glitching' and I fell"   
Jinyoung stared at him, expecting him to elaborate, possibly expecting to say he didn't die.   
"I didn't wake up on the ground or on the roof, I woke up somewhere completely different", Jaebum knew he had Jinyoung's attention, the boy's arms were folded, one supporting his chin and his eyes were focused, intent on Jaebum. "I woke up in this classroom, the others were there. But there were flying cars and everything was clean and wrong. And when I went to the roof, I blacked out and woke up here, well on the roof in this place"   
Jinyoung stood silent, Jaebum could almost hear him thinking and was anxious for an answer, "Well?"  
He shook his head, "I don't understand, that's never happened to me. I don't even know what to think of it."  
"Well what do you think?"  
Jinyoung sighed, "I don't know, maybe there are multiple simulations and you jumped across to another one? I really don't know. There's one thing you should know though"  
"Youngjae is starting to notice things too"


	4. Chapter 4

Jaebum stood anxiously outside of Jinyoung's house's door. He was worried that someone would catch him even though he knew it was irrational.   
One thing he had noticed was that the streets were completely silent, no cars, no night life, just crickets chirping and wind.   
Although, he couldn't see any crickets and couldn't feel the wind.  
The door opened and he was faced with Jinyoung, who was wearing an oversized t-shirt and shorts. His hair was messy and his eyes looked tired.   
"Hey", he mumbled in quick greeting and Jaebum nodded, a slight blush dusting over his cheeks. He had never seen the boy in this setting and it felt intimate and private, almost intruding.   
Jinyoung gestured inside and Jaebum followed. "Do you want anything?", he offered and Jaebum declined. The fear of being caught was still there.   
"What about your parents?"  
"What about them?"   
Jaebum faltered slightly, stumbling on how to express his thoughts."Won't they wake from the noise or something. Am I even allowed round right now?"  
Jinyoung ran a hand through his messy hair and scoffed slightly, "Did you not notice what the streets are like during the night?"  
"There were no cars or people, or even noise"  
"They're not programmed for the night. They expected us to be asleep during the night. Doesn't your body feel tired? Doesn't it feel like an effort even to be here?"   
Jaebum understood, his body felt stiff and his eyes sore. His body was practically asking just to lay down somewhere and to close his eyes. He had never felt this tired. Even when he spent a whole day cycling around the simulation he felt fine. "We are programmed to feel tired, if the day isn't mentally exhausting we still feel a need to sleep to give us no reason to be out during the night, therefore no risk of finding out the truth"   
They stood in a comfortable silence, a yellow lamp throwing a soft glow over the room. Jaebum found himself staring at Jinyoung again, admiring how ethereal the boy looked in the soft glow, how his collarbones stood out, temptingly exposed by the over sized shirt. Admiring how soft his lips looked and how deep and full of emotion his eyes were. He wondered idly whether the boy was as beautiful in real life. He hoped so.   
"What?", He broke the silence and Jaebum tore his eyes away, hastily shaking his head as he focused on the floor.   
"N-nothing"  
Jinyoung eyes narrowed slightly, both boys knew it was nothing, "Do you trust me?"  
"Of course"  
.  
Jaebum was nearing unconsciousness and his eyelids had already fallen shut, despite his mind running a marathon of thoughts.   
"You won't be able to sleep until you get back to your bed", Jinyoung's soft deep voice wafted through his thoughts and Jaebum hummed in response, not really processing what the boy said and enjoying the deep calm in the boy's voice.   
His eyes snapped open.   
"What?"  
"You won't be able to sleep until you get back, it's like a reset point or something. The next day can't come unless everyone is in their reset point"   
Jaebum stalled for a moment, focusing on the cold moon rays that lit up the soft dark blue blanket on Jinyoung's bed.   
"How long has it been?"  
"Well the clock says it's still 10pm"  
"But that's-"  
"Impossible. We've been talking for hours in real time. But like I said. The next day can't come unless everyone is in their, 'reset point'"  
.  
.  
The days didn't seem to blur into one after that. Jaebum would go to school, confide in Jinyoung, notice Youngjae's off behavior, talk about any new thoughts or revaluations and return to the house. On the weekend he would either go out with all the boys or to Jinyoung's house.   
Although he had to admit that Youngjae was showing more and more signs and the two of them didn't know how to approach the situation.   
If Youngjae didn't realize the entire situation there was a risk he'd expose all of them accidentally, either by telling the wrong person or going to the other boys about it. Who were currently clueless.   
However, if he did understand it all and didn't panic then Jaebum felt it would be safe to explain and confide in younger boy.   
He glanced across the classroom at the said boy. His laughter echoed loudly through the classroom and his smile shone brighter than the sun. But as soon as Jackson turned to tell BamBam the same joke, that billion-dollar-worthy smile dropped. His eyes were devoid of Joy and filled with alert and insecurity instead. His posture seemed guarded and tense. Youngjae glanced over his shoulder and made eye contact with Jaebum, he didn't even hide that he was observing the younger boys' behavior. Jaebum tried to smile warmly but felt it came out more as a grimace.   
Youngjae's soft, chocolate brown eyes darted across Jaebum's face, trying to gauge his reaction and emotion, trying to look for danger. He returned with a tighter grimace and a slight nod before turning back to the front of the classroom, now that the teacher had gotten BamBam and Jackson to be quiet temporarily.   
Jaebum knew that Youngjae understood, he knew that Youngjae knew he was watching him and both boys realized what was actually going on.   
.  
.  
Jaebum woke at exactly 7.00 am. He dressed for school and grabbed the notebook that was full of recordings and observations, and made his way downstairs. Where his mother kissed him on the cheek before he sat down and his fathers' car was already driving onto the road. But it didn't feel bland anymore. There was a longing, almost excitement at confiding in Jinyoung. The real Jinyoung, not just a simulation.   
He got to school by bike, put it in the bike shed and didn't even bother to lock it up.   
He made his way through the corridors, up the stairs and into his classroom, greeted the clueless boys and waited for Jinyoung's arrival.   
Jinyoung arrived at 8.00am. 15 minutes before school officially started. He greeted the clueless boys in similar fashion and nodded at Jaebum, who followed him towards the boys bathroom.   
Jaebum didn't notice Youngjae's lingering eyes as the two left the room.   
Nor did he expect the boy to burst into the bathrooms a mere few minutes later and almost gave Jaebum a heart attack from fright.   
"Why do you keep sneaking off?"  
.  
.  
.  
BamBam lay in his bed, staring at the ceiling.   
He wanted to cry.   
His nose felt blocked, throat painful and eyes watering.   
He had been like this for ages, in real time maybe a few hours.   
But he couldn't cry, another part of the simulation.   
He was scared, scratch that, terrified. Everyday, he continued like there wasn't anxiety and paranoia crawling under his skin and settling in his bones and chest, both hot and cold. Sharp and heavy.   
He was loosing control, and fast. He had to do something.   
If he didn't everything would go to waste, all the effort, money, research and all those that died in vain would be a waste.   
There was a reason he didn't resist.


	5. Chapter 5

"I have an idea"  
.  
The three boys stood outside the gates of the school. There was no lock on the gates, no crime in the town so no reason but Jaebum wondered if they could still get in.   
He watched Jinyoung walk forward and effortlessly push the gates open and shrugged at Youngjae before following him.   
Confiding in Youngjae was a releif to Jaebum, he trusted Jinyoung but wanted to do more for the other boys. He wanted to protect them and help them out.   
Having Youngjae trust him, even just for this situation, filled that want. And although he could still see the danger seeking paranoia and anxiety in the younger boys eyes. There was something else now.   
A sense of trust, not being alone, belonging.   
.   
"Hyung, when you said you had an idea I really didn't expect this"  
Jinyoung had led them to the roof of the school, where Jaebum had the glitch and fell, where Jaebum was lost for answers.   
"You say you saw the glitching at the door?", Jinyoung asked, gesturing generally at the direction. Jaebum nodded, before thinking of something else.   
He walked over to the edge of the roof and stood in his previous position, before glancing at the door. "Right, there" He murmurerd as he moved Jinyoung by the shoulders. The glitch was still there. The same distortion of air and Jaebum had no doubt that it he repeated his previous actions he would experience all the previous things.   
"Here's my idea. Jaebum said when he fell he 'went' or whatever, to somewhere else. We can't die or get hurt in this world. Why not try it out and try to figure something out?"  
The two boys stared at Jinyoung in slight shock and horror.   
"I mean," Youngjae started off, his voice full of hesitation and slight confusion, "You're right, we can't die or get hurt. But still, at what cost hyung?"  
"Youngjae's right. Why would we willingly fling ourselves off a roof?"  
The wind filled the silence, Jinyoung seemed disappointed. The sun and sky was bright but Jaebum couldn't feel the wind or sun on his skin. It was suffocating.   
"Don't you get it? That's the whole point. We are invincible in this reality. We can do anything risky and no one will even question it. And who knows. Maybe what Jaebum experienced is a clue to the way out"  
Jinyoung was almost pleading with the two boys, god knows how they all wanted to escape this. Jaebum glanced at Youngjae to find the younger was looking at him for an answer.   
"I'm in if Jaebum hyung is"  
Jaebum felt a surge of pride on top of his fear and anxiety. Despite the situation, he knew Youngjae trusted him without exception and it made him feel proud, grounded and real.   
"Yeah, okay then".   
.  
The three boys stood along the roof edge. Holding hands tightly for reassurance. Despite the knowledge that they wouldn't get hurt Jaebum still feared for his life.   
"Youngjae, time?", he heard Jinyoung call from his left. His right hand gripping tightly onto the boy who seemed to know what he was doing.   
Youngjae shifted on his right, his hand tightly gripping Jaebum's trusting Jaebum with his life. "11am"   
Silence fell over them and Jaebum realized he had the final move. He was the one that experienced it and the other two were waiting on him to make a move but fear was stopping him. Fear was keeping him from leaning backwards and falling over the edge of the roof. But he had to do it.   
Jaebum heard a small, 'Hyung I'm scared' from his right before he tipped himself backwards. Surrendering his fate and body to the dark and numb abyss that held him the last time, and taking the two boys that trusted him with their lives with him.  
.  
.  
BamBam lay awake again, the night was quiet and still. Too quiet and still. The thought would've driven him crazy if he didn't know it was real. If he didn't know that it would come to an end at some point.   
He no longer felt choked or suffocated. He had a plan.   
Admittedly he still had to think how to carry it out but he would figure it out eventually. Nothing was impossible here.   
But he made a promise, over his dead body that he would as much as he could to help those in need. And he had every intention of carrying it out.


	6. Chapter 6

Jaebum sighed to himself and dropped his bag on the floor. His body felt stiff and he was mentally exhausted from all the thinking, and solving, and trying.   
Emotions.   
That was something he didn't need right now. They were confusing and inconvenient. Filling his mind with endless possibilities and confusion when he needed to think of more important things other than how his heart fluttered when Jinyoung pushed his fringe out of his eyes in concentration and bit his lip or the giddy warmth that spread through his chest whenever Youngjae laughed.   
He sighed. He was sick of this, he needed to escape, he needed to be real.   
Without a thought he fell forward onto his bed, expecting to hit the soft covers and drift into sleep but he didn't.   
He just kept falling.   
.  
.  
.  
Youngjae expected to see the pale ceiling of his bedroom when he woke up. He expected to carry out the normal routine that happened every morning, head over to JInyoung's house where Jaebum would also be and they would discuss what happened on the school roof yesterday.   
None of these happened.   
Youngjae stared into the cold, blue darkness, not moving out of fright that something horrifying would come out of the shadows.   
He took a deep breathe, trying to calm himself down and remembered that it wasn't real. He was still in the simulation after all.   
He began to assess the situation, almost a way of calming down through grounding? observation? He wasn't sure which one but it worked.   
He was in a dark room, the ceiling and walls were shrouded in darkness and not visible but the floor had several centimeters of water on it. The water had already soaked the bottom of his trousers and shoes but he couldn't feel it against his skin. More confirmation that he was still in the simulation. He was leaning against something solid and smooth, with little texture but he was too afraid to turn his back to the darkness. The fear that something horrific would leap at him as soon as he removed his gaze  
There was no use trying to figure it out from touch alone, he would have to turn his back to the darkness eventually.   
That was when it hit him.   
He was surprised he hadn't thought about it before, a vague memory of learning how to code at school. Too vague to remember details but somehow he knew it was his own memory not something from the simulation. He couldn't remember faces, people, or anything specific. But they were learning how to program a basic game, where the alien would touch the icon and the icon would change color to symbolize an injury. It was the simplest coding, the icon's purpose was the change color once it touched the alien.   
If he applied that analogy to this situation, he would be the icon, and his purpose would be to react to his surroundings.  
But the icon in the game wasn't self aware, and he was. Presuming he was a main part of the coding, they all would have to be. He had to react to the surroundings.   
What if he didn't? What if he simply refused. Surely, by logic either nothing would happen to him or the event would go away.   
So the icon would stay the same when the alien touched it, or the alien would simply dissapear.   
He took a deep breathe, closed his eye and turned to face the thing he was leaning against.   
There was only one way to find out.   
.  
.  
.  
When Jaebum woke, he wasn't surprised to find that he wasn't in his room. He reconginsed the same falling feeling as before, the out of body experiences and the numb, never ending darkness that shrouded him.   
The white light was painful when he opened his eyes and he lay there for several moments, adjusting to the light and being aware of his body once more.   
When he finally got used to it, he sat up.   
It was silent, like nothing he had ever experienced. Even in the previous simulation there was a programmed background noise. He couldn't stay here long, he knew the silence would drive him crazy.   
He was in a room, the wall were bare and white, almost as bright as the lights. In front of him there were many trees, each little over his height and coming from the white floor. But the way they grew was unnatural, instead of root dissapearning into the floor, it was as if someone had cut the bottom of the trees off and stuck them to the ground.   
He walked past several rows of the same trees with seemingly no variation before spotting a large white gate. It was taller than anything else in the room, he would've guessed maybe twice his height and made of painted iron by guess. It had the same pattern and design as a old rusty iron gate you would get in a detective novel.   
A vague memory, but definite, real.   
There was an invisible wall separating him and the gate, similar to the wall surrounding the town he found, but something caught his eye and despite the wall stopping him he peered behind the gate.   
There was a small doorway, with not door and a corridor that dissapeared into a cold, blue darkness. There was a slight shimmering on the side of the wall. Unlike the glitching he experienced on the roof, similar to a water reflection.   
Maybe that was his escape from this place. Maybe he had to drown himself in the water, and then he would wake up back in his bed.   
How would he get past the gate?  
.  
Thankfully, Youngjae had not been attacked by something horrifying emerging from the darkness. Which, annoyingly neither confirmed nor proved his theory so far. He was, however, shocked to find out what he was originally leaning against. It was a large tank of water, the high metal base came up to his shoulders, and on the base rested a glass tank that was slowly filling with water.   
In the tank was Jinyoung.   
Youngjae's blood froze, his limbs felt numb and he lost the ability to breathe for the second time. He immediately forgot fears of the shadows or the code theory, every brain cell was focused on Jinyoung trapped in the tank.   
JInyoung seemed to be aware of the situation, giving Youngjae a grimace and resting his hand against the glass. He opened is mouth to say something but it never reached Youngjae.   
He wasn't sure whether that was the simulation or the thickness of the glass. Tears stung his eyes and he slammed his fist against the glass, desperation leading him. He had no idea what would happen to Jinyoung when the tank was full.  
Would he be fine? Would he drown? Would it send him back to his house? Would he be left by his own in the shadows?   
Jinyoung was still trying to communication and Youngjae gave up, he rested his head against the tank and let out a pathetic sob of anger and hurt.   
Why did they have to chose him?   
Instantly he regretted the thought, if it was him or Jaebum in the tank the situation would be no better  
Eventually Jinyoung stopped, resulting to pressing his open palm against the inside of the glass. Youngjae's throat burned and he tried taking deep breaths, he aligned his hand with Jinyoung's, the glass separating their touch, desperate to find a way.  
But there were no marks on the glass and no tears falling.   
The realization hit him so fast he swore if it was physical he would've gotten whiplash.   
Of course, he was still in the simulation, this wasn't real. Otherwise he would be crying, there would be tears and he would've broken his fist a while ago.   
He wouldn't be able to convince himself or the coding that he could break the glass with his fist, he guessed the more realistic the better chance of it working. If only he could find something sharp or heavy, logically that would break the glass.   
He sighed, shoving his hands into his pockets and walking through the water on the floor. The water in the tank was now in level with Jinyoung's waist, he was sitting down, it wouldn't take long for the tank to fill.   
Youngjae was so deep in his thought he almost tripped over the object. Instantly he dropped to his knees and began searching the dark water for the object and soon his hands brushed against it.   
It couldn't have been coincidence, it had to be the theory. Youngjae pulled a sledge hammer from the dark water and smiled.   
He knew what he had to do.   
The water seemed to have sped up, and was now dangerously in level with Jinyoung's neck, soon it would submerge him but Youngjae didn't worry about that. He signaled at the tank, then at the hammer. Jinyoung smirked and nodded, trying to take up as less space as possible and moving to protect his head.   
He took a deep breathe, visualized the hammer smashing through the glass at first hit, visualized the water rushing out and Jinyoung climbing out. He knew it would work.   
.  
Jaebum gave up. No matter what he did he couldn't even get near the gate, he couldn't touch it. Let alone get over it. There were no visible locks but he assumed it would locked.   
He leant against the white wall. Maybe it was something to do with the trees? It couldn't be. There were no tools to use, no way to move the trees or do anything with them.   
He was trapped.   
Alone.   
In this horrific white room.   
And no one knew where he was.   
His mind wondered to Youngjae and Jinyoung. Whether they would notice his absence. Whether he would be replaced by a coded copy of himself. Without the need to escape. Would they reseal in time? Wuuld they carry on like normal and end up in trouble?   
.  
Youngjae launched himself at Jinyong's soaked figure, wrapping his arms tightly around the elder. Jinyoung didn't resist. It was a terrifying experience for the both of them. But Youngjae had now answered several questions in Jinyoung's mind and started a dozen more.   
Jinyoung had a way to get out.   
.  
There was a commotion from the corridor beyond the gate. A slight splashing noise and hushed voices. It filled Jaebum with relief and anxiety, until. Jinyoung and Youngjae appeared from the dark blue corridor. Both considerably wet, although Jinyoung was more so, leaving a trail of water along the white floor. Youngjae still seemed relatively presentable.   
Jaebum leapt up from the ground and they hurried over when they saw him. Jaebum didn't miss that they were holding hands.   
"I can't get out, there's something stopping me", He tried to tell them but his voice felt muffled, and he couldn't clearly make out what they were saying.   
But the look on Jinyoung's face was recognizable, he was onto a solution, so Jaebum watched as the two came up with a solution. 

He noticed a difference between the two, something that wasn't there before. Jinyoung looked at Youngjae with more curiosity, almost as if he was trying to figure the boy out. His actions were more encouraging, picking up on Youngjae's hesitations and insecurities. Something had changed between them in the other room and it made Jaebum feel a certain way. He wasn't quite sure what it was but he didn't like it.   
Youngjae moved towards the gate, getting Jaebum's attention again. He reached out for the gate and Jaebum was about to tell him that it wouldn't work but he pulled the gate open almost effortlessly. Jaebum stared in amazement and confusion, noticing the immediate look the other two exchanged between each other, there was definitely something going on. And he was keen to find out.


	7. Chapter 7

When Jaebum woke up in his bed it was morning. But the only thing on his mind was yesterday's 'incident'.   
He skipped through the morning routine and journey on autopilot, anxiety rooted so deep in him he felt like he's floating.   
When he got to school he headed straight for the boys bathroom on the top floor and waited.  
Every second he waited felt like a year. Every moment agonizingly stretched out and hanging on.   
Every noise from outside the door made him flinch and look up until he opted for staring at the door.   
When the door swung open and revealed a serious looking Jinyoung dragging a scared looking Youngjae behind him by the collar of his school shirt Jaebum flinched.   
Within seconds he could tell what the boys thought of yesterdays events. Jinyoung was so deep in thought that he barely even registered Jaebum, his expression had grown so serious that Jaebum would've said he was angry if he didn't know better.   
Youngjae however looked terrified, he immediately sat down on the floor next to Jaebum, hugging his knees to his chest and leaning into Jaebum's embrace.   
Jaebum didn't know what to say, so he looked at Jinyoung for guidance, who once again barely noticed.   
He called the boy's name once, then again, the third time he was awarded with his attention but the intensity of his expression throws Jaebum off briefly.   
"What is it?"  
"You're thinking about something", Jaebum declared and Jinyoung nodded thoughtfully, confirming his suspicion. "What is it?", he asked before he lost Jinyoung to his thoughts once more.   
Jinyoung looked away, biting his lip in concentration, something that would have distracted Jaebum if it wasn't for the fear and anxiety of the situation.   
"Hypothetically, we think, that Youngjae might be able to control the simulation"   
Jaebum felt Youngjae flinch ever so slightly and he pulled the boy closer and began to rub comforting circles into his shoulder. "Explain"  
"Have you ever done coding?"  
"I think once-"  
"Doesn't matter, say there's a situation, like uh, a game. And there is you, the main character and an alien", Jinyoung paused to look for confusion in Jaebum's eyes and seeing none, continued "The coding instructions are, that if the alien touches you, you react, in this example, you change colour and that means that the alien caught you or whatever"   
"Here's the theory, what if you as the main character, became self aware, and chose not to react.", Jaebum considered, then nodded for Jinyoung to continue, "Either the threat, say the alien wouldn't harm you or it would just dissapear, right? If you don't change the instructions around you do to adapt to the problem or it crashes"  
In that moment it clicked, and it certainly was a possibility. Youngjae seemed a bit calmer now, still hidden in Jaebum's arm but calmer.   
"So, since we are in a very complex-"  
"And probably adaptable simulation to the point where it predicts our moves and motives"  
"If we refuse to change the simulation around us does to prevent crashing?"  
Jinyoung nods, happy that both boys were on the same thought train as him and that the theory makes sense.   
"So where does Youngjae come into this?"  
Jinyoung's expression dropped.   
.  
.  
.  
The three boys stood at the busiest road in the city, which wasn't that busy and never had traffic jams.   
Now they were testing the theory out, Jaebum didn't seem to sure about it, and neither did Youngjae but Jinyoung was dead set on it.   
"Hold on, you want me to intentionally get hit by a car?" Youngjae asked Jinyoung, not quite believing what the older was asking him to do.   
"Yeah but you won't get hurt, either the car will dissapear or it will break before it hits you"   
Jaebum would've found the situation funny if his anxiety wasn't raging inside of him. The small comfort of not being able to be injured didn't help settle it.   
Youngjae sighed and shook his head, before walking into the empty road and standing in the middle of it. A cry of warning rose in Jaebum's throat but never made it out.  
"He'll be okay, he has to be" Jinyoung tried to calm him but it was effect-less, Jaebum wondered if Jinyoung had said it to reassure himself. He heard a car pull around the corner and held his breath.  
"What do I do?" Youngjae shouted from the middle of the road and Jaebum knew he was hiding his fear for them.   
"I don't knows, visualize a wall or something, like the force field around the city?"  
Jinyoung's voice seemed twice as loud as it should have been and made Jaebum flinch, the car was now driving down the road, making a beeline for Youngjae who stood in the middle of its path.   
Jaebum grips Jinyoung's hand tightly for comfort and turns his face into his shoulder.   
He didn't want to watch. He didn't want to see Youngjae get hurt or die or dissapear.   
The car came closer and Jinyoung's hand gripped his tightly, only now did Jaebum realise Jinyoung was afraid of it going wrong too. He peeked out from the comfort of Jinyoung's school shirt to see Youngjae, now crouching, hands over his head protectively.  
He couldn't watch this. He couldn't watch it go wrong.   
The sound of the engine came closer and Jaebum closed his eyes tightly, trying to focus on his breathing, trying to slow his pounding heart. Noticing the strong smell of Jinyoung's cologne.   
The sound of the engine was so close and sounded way too loud.   
Jaebum flinched when he heard the crash.  
He let out a slight gasp but it felt so far away he barely realized it came from him.   
He felt Jinyoung's entire body tense, his grip on his hand was almost painful.  
Jaebum counted the painful seconds to ten, desperately trying to calm down, being seconds from a panic attack and it was Jinyoung's voice that calmed him.   
"He's okay, you can look"   
It took a few moments for Jaebum to process the words, and a few more for him to come out of Jinyoung's comfort. And when he did he sees Jinyoung was telling the truth.   
Youngjae was now sitting on the road, staring up at the car, that had frozen, inches away from his face. The hood and windscreen had shattered and crumpled, parts had scattered either side of the boy but there was a now-visable wall similar to the force field in front of Youngjae. Every few seconds waves of electricty surged through it and the now connected car, revealing tiny squares under the pattern. Similar to the glitching they had experienced on the roof.   
Jinyoung was the first to break out of the daze, hurrying to Youngjae and picking him up from the ground. As soon as they got to the side of the road the wall dissapeard, sending the parts and the car that had been momentarily suspended, crashing to the ground.   
Then, after glitching for a few seconds. Any trace of the car or the crash dissapeared.   
"What the fuck"


	8. Chapter 8

"We have to tell the others", Jaebum decided as the three of them head back towards the school. Glancing at the boys he saw jinyoung nod in agreement and Youngjae look at him for guidance. "It's not fair to keep them in the dark about something so serious"   
"Yes but how much do we tell them", Jinyoung paused mid step and the other two did the same without realising. "Do we tell them about the incident, what Youngjae can do?"  
"No, we don't say about Youngjae, that's too risky" Jaebum exchanged glances with said boy for confirmation and Youngjae nodded, agreeing with him. "We tell them now, and all together. We don't mention any thing else but the glitching and how everything isn't real"   
.  
.  
.  
.  
BamBam lay awake in his bed, he had lost count of the sleepless nights. He felt like he had lost control of everything.   
He had made a mistake, acted too quickly and now he had to deal with the consequences. Jaebum wouldn't have backed down to a threat and Jinyoung was smart enough to see through it. It would've worked on Youngjae if it wasn't for the other two.   
And now everyone knew.   
Well, technically they only knew a small fraction of it but the truth was shocking enough for them to go against the programming.   
He sighed and rubbed his sleepy eyes. Everything was going wrong. He had two smart and determined ones, one terrified yet powerful one, and now three scared but ready to fight ones to deal with on top of everything.  
When would they tell the others the truth? When would Youngjae be brought up? What would happen when they all left this reality?   
It clicked. In an instant BamBam knew exactly what he had to do and yet he only had one chance to get it right.   
He wriggled into a comfortable position in his sheets, closing his eyes as code began to fill his vision.   
.  
.  
.  
The seven boy sat on the roof of the school, the reality of the situation only starting to weigh on their shoulders.   
"So, how exactly is this meant to happen?" Jackson asked the million dollar question that Mark and Yugyeom were also wondering.   
"We are all going to jump off the roof", Jinyoung stated, his face completely serious.   
"No, absoloutely not"  
"No way"  
"Haha, that's really funny"   
Jinyoung sighed, maybe one day he would be able to get his point across, "I mean it's funny because that's exactly what we all will do"   
This time he was met with silence.   
"We can't die or get hurt in the simulation. Jaebum fell off the roof accidentally and fell into another reality."  
Mark frowned, it almost made sense, but not quite. "How do we know that we will wake up in real life and not another reality?"   
"Because they can't replace or reprogram all seven of us. You take out the characters in a game simulation and it stops"  
"That's dangerous hyung, we are still in the simulation. What if something goes wrong?"   
"It won't, they want us to be in good condition for a reason. They will have safety protocols, ways to get us out. Overload the system and they will have no choice but to wake us up. And when we wake up in the real world. We fight back and find each other"   
The silence returned, but it was satisfied.   
"Everyone still in?"   
The four of them nodded.   
"Bam you've been very quiet," There was worry in Jinyoung's tone but it struck fear through BamBam.   
"I'm afraid of heights"   
It worked.   
.  
Jaebum stood on the edge of the roof suddenly regretting a whole lot. The drop seemed way worse than before, and he could see a slight glitching that he was meant to be looking for.   
For some crazy ass reason he had volunteered to go first as an example and now he was regretting it. He wasn't ready to leave. He wasn't ready to be alone. He wanted to do this with Jinyoung and Younjae, wanted to wake up with them. See them in real life, hear their voices, touch them. He wanted to feel real. But he wasn't ready to do it alone.   
Jinyoung's hand rested on the small of his back and Jaebum could feel the warmth of his hand through his school shirt.   
"You'll be fine", he sounded too calm, too reassuring.   
Jaebum looked deep into Jinyoung's soft, warm gaze. His eyes stung and his throat ached. "I don't want to wake up alone", he mumbled. Quiet enough for Jinyoung, and only Jinyoung to hear.   
"It'll be fine, quick, easy. We'll see each other in no time, in real life."  
Jaebum nodded, focusing on the drop now. He didn't want to do this, he wanted to hide in Jinyoung's comfort.   
Jinyoung pressed a kiss to the top of his shoulder, barely hidden from the others but he didnt' seem to care in the moment. "See you on the other side", he mumbled before walking away. Jaebum couldn't look at him, gaze fixed on the drop, the skin on his shoulder feeling like it was burning from the gesture.   
He took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and fell forward.


	9. Chapter 9

there was a chapter 9 where they woke up from the simulation then the next part is about their recovery/getting to properly know each other in the real world and find out what really happened to them.   
it got delete and im too depressed/unmotivated to rewrite it sorry enjoy the next part


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